(Slender Candelabra)

One of the more beautiful large Euphorbia, slender candelabra has an exceptional upright form and produces many stems of bright green. In fact, mature wild specimens can produce as many as 50 branched stems. A native of southern Africa, specifically the Auas Mountains of Namibia and along the Orange River of Botswana, it is frost-tender but very tough and drought tolerant.

The upright, bright yellow-green stems of slender candelabra have distinct vertical ribs lined with pairs of dark...

(Glacier Blue Spurge, Mediterranean Spurge, Variegated Spurge)

Glacier Blue variegated spurge offers blue-gray foliage edged in creamy white, lending extra visual appeal to its bold, architectural form. A shrubby species native to Portugal and the western Mediterranean region of Europe, 'Glacier Blue' is a more compact form that was a mutation of the popular cultivar 'Tasmanian Tiger' found in 2004.

The narrow, linear leaves of this perennial densely encircle thick, upright stems, and remain evergreen to semi-evergreen throughout winter. Airy, rounded...

(Mediterranean Spurge, Tasmanian Tiger Spurge)

Tasmanian Tiger spurge was discovered in Tasmania, Australia in 1993, and was selected for its compact growth and beautifully variegated foliage. It resulted from a chance cross between Euphorbia characias ‘Lambrook Gold’ and an unidentified cultivar of the same species. It is a form of Mediterranean spurge, a shrubby perennial native to Portugal and the western Mediterranean region of Europe.

The mint green leaves and flower bracts of ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ are edged and striped with...

(Mediterranean Spurge, Silver Swan Spurge)

Silver Swan spurge, selection ‘Wilcott’, offers mint green foliage edged crisply in white, lending extra visual appeal to its bold, architectural form. Originally discovered in England, this selection offers more vigorous growth than previously available variegated cultivars, and is also sold under the name ‘Silver Swan’. It is derived from a shrubby species native to Portugal and the western Mediterranean region of Europe.

The narrow, linear leaves of this perennial densely encircle thick,...

(Blue Euphorbia, Soet Noors)

What makes this plant different from the many other large branching Euphorbia species is the thickness of the branches, which are also more rounded. It is a native of South Africa where it is known as the blue euphorbia, they can be found on rocky slopes with extreme drainage and full sun. This plant is also unique in that it spreads by rhizomes into large colonies of tightly packed vertical branches. They rise upwards from the soil, occasionally branching, but usually just at the tip. Paired...

(First Blush Spurge, Spurge)

‘First Blush’ creates a spectacular color display with its unique green, white and pink variegated foliage. A patented cultivar, it was originally discovered in Germantown, Wisconsin as a mutated branch on a cultivated seedling of Euphorbia epithymoides. The parent species originates from Europe and Turkey, and is commonly known as cushion spurge.

This compact, clump-forming perennial forms a tidy mound of short stems which are densely encircled with linear, fine-textured foliage....

(Scarlet-plume)

Scarlet plume is an upright deciduous subshrub with long weeping branches that become covered with blooms in winter. It is native to Mexico that exudes a milky sap from its stems and leaves that can be a mild skin irritant. Its winter display makes it best suited as a landscape plant for the far south, though it can also serve as a houseplant or conservatory specimen.

In winter, the colorful scarlet plume becomes covered with small blooms that appear along its long arching branches between...

(Cow's Horn)

Very long and formidable thorns is what distinguishes this large branching succulent shrub from the other nearly identical species. It is a native of the moist eastern coast of South Africa in the state of Natal, homeland of the Zulu. The plants can be found in the bush hill country where soils are rich and well drained. This great succulent produces multiple branching from the base, with some of the outer limbs forced along the ground where they are inclined to root. The central branches are more...

(Chandelier Euphorbia, Large-toothed Euphorbia)

Tall and gangley, this disorganized looking succulent tree is not as geometrically beautiful as some, but it compensates with a cast iron constitution. It is native to the eastern regions of South Africa where its range spans both states of Natal and drier inland Transvaal. Where moisture is more plentiful these plants can reach monumental proportions with large copses of them functioning much like its own forest ecosystem. They are found in both savanna and hill country wherever soils are sufficiently...

(African Milk Barrel)

Modern designers love the silver metallic sheen of this unusual, rock hard succulent, which is also a favorite of collectors. It is native to very steep rocky terrain in coastal South Africa where plants often nestle into boulders to tap moisture protected underground. What makes this plant so fabulous is its silvery coloring, which remains consistent year around. Its spherical form with many angled edges resembles a true cactus, bearing modest black or gray thorns the length of a thumbnail. The...